Missouri Town Plans $5.84 Million Tax Break to Lure Big FedEx Center
St. Peters, Mo., could offer a property tax break of $5.84 million over 10 years to lure a large FedEx complex to the levee-protected Premier 370 business park in the city’s Mississippi River flood plain.
Aldermen on Sept. 28 night are expected to vote on a resolution endorsing the plan. The real estate tax break would amount to a 50% reduction of what normally would be paid on the new 496,209-square-foot facility.
FedEx estimates that 53 new full-time jobs and 237 part-time jobs would be created at the complex. The facility would be used for package distribution and storage for the Memphis, Tenn.-based shipping giant’s ground delivery system.
FedEx ranks No. 2 on the Transport Topics Top 100 list of the largest North American for-hire carriers.
The plan says the local economy also would benefit from construction jobs to build the facility and “collateral benefits” for local suppliers during construction.
City officials say the new facility, which would start operations in 2019, would expand the company’s presence in the St. Louis area.
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The city’s incentive package also includes a sales tax exemption for building materials bought for the project. There would be no abatement of personal property tax on a projected $51 million in equipment and other material expected to be installed.
The city also would issue industrial revenue bonds of as much as $50 million for the project, with the company required to pay off the principal and interest.
The size of the yearly property tax break would be tied to the amount of “quality jobs” provided each year.
The plan’s cost-benefit analysis assumes that at least 125 full-time equivalent jobs with an average base wage of at least $16 an hour and health insurance would be provided throughout the 10-year period.
The city is working with Indianapolis-based Scannell Properties, which would build the facility on the 113-acre site.
City Attorney Randy Weber said approval of the plan by aldermen would be a key step but that it’s possible that details could change before the bonds actually are issued.
